DASFAM_27

In the blink of an eye, late June had arrived, and the air already carried the sweltering heat of early summer.

For the sake of convenience, the Shang elders' wedding anniversary banquet was arranged within the estate itself.

In the bedroom's walk-in wardrobe, Bai Xu stood before the mirror fussing with the silk bow tie that had come with his suit, yet no matter what he tried, he simply could not fasten it properly. He furrowed his brow in mild irritation. "Tsk."

Knock, knock.

A knock at the door.

Bai Xu stilled his hands and leaned out from the dressing room. "Who is it?"

"Me."

Even just that single syllable sounded exceptionally pleasant to the ear.

Bai Xu recognized the voice's owner. "Door's unlocked. Come right in."

The door opened and closed. Shang Yanxiao strode briskly inside.

Bai Xu turned back to continue working at his collar, his gaze finding the newcomer through the mirror. "Third Young Master is getting bolder and bolder, even daring to step out of the master bedroom now."

Shang Yanxiao said, "Today, everything of importance at the estate is centered on the banquet. No one will come here at all."

Besides, Chen Yufei and the others were keeping watch at home and could notify them at any moment should something come up.

Shang Yanxiao still could not conveniently show his face, so he reminded him of the time. "How are you coming along? It's nearly time to head to the banquet."

Shang Queyan had only just finished today's rehabilitation session and would need a little more time to make it back to the estate. For now, only Bai Xu could attend first on behalf of the third branch.

"Mm, I'm almost ready."

Bai Xu tried the bow tie one more time, then simply gave up the struggle. "Forget it."

Shang Yanxiao drew closer. "What's the matter?"

Bai Xu turned around, and for once let a trace of exasperation show. "The silk on this bow tie is too slippery, and the hidden clasp on the inside is too small. I can't see it with my head bowed, and I can't fasten it blind no matter what I do. It's infuriating."

Having said that, his eyes met Shang Yanxiao's.

In that brief, wordless moment of mutual understanding, both of them spoke at the same instant—

"Could you help me?"

"Should I help you?"

Two questions carrying the same meaning collided at once, drawing a laugh from Bai Xu. He took the initiative to close the distance between them. "Then I'll have to trouble Third Young Master?"

Bai Xu tilted his head up, trying to make up for the height difference between himself and Shang Yanxiao. "Mm~ lend me a hand, would you?"

"......"

Shang Yanxiao's gaze slid downward from his brow and eyes. After a moment's consideration, he reached out to help after all.

The silk bow tie was indeed slippery, and the overly tight hidden clasp was no easy thing to fasten. Shang Yanxiao focused intently, his eyes fixed on the task, and his moving fingers grazed Bai Xu's Adam's apple with a feather-light touch— there and almost not there.

Again and again, a soft, brushing stroke, like the sweep of a feather.

Bai Xu stared at that outrageously perfect jawline of his, and all of a sudden found himself barely able to withstand that faint, tingling sensation. He tilted his head to the side, trying to escape it.

The hidden clasp that Shang Yanxiao had only just managed to fasten was pulled loose again. Helpless, he said, "Stop moving."

Bai Xu's throat bobbed, and he shifted uncomfortably. "It tickles."

"……"

At those words, Shang Yanxiao's peripheral gaze shifted ever so slightly.

The other man's Adam's apple had already taken on a faint flush of red— sensitive to a degree that seemed almost unreasonable, and with each subtle rise and fall of that delicate swallowing motion, there was something in it that could not quite be named or described, something undeniably sensual.

Shang Yanxiao's gaze, fixed and unmoving, grew increasingly candid. Under that stare, Bai Xu felt his heart lurch, and on instinct he shrank back a step. "Um, that, I- I think I'll just change to a different tie."

The silken bow tie ribbon slipped through the fingers, light and drifting.

Shang Yanxiao's fingertips closed instinctively, as though trying to hold onto something— he was not sure what. His gaze followed Bai Xu's figure as he rummaged through the dresser drawers, and then his eyes caught on something else—

At the center of Bai Xu's nape, a small mole lay hidden, somewhere between a pale rose and brown, revealing itself only when he tilted his head slightly forward, stealing out to captivate.

"……"

Shang Yanxiao's breath caught, for no reason he could name.

When Bai Xu turned back around having selected a new tie, he met that unblinking, intent gaze head-on. "Shang- Shang Yanxiao? What are you looking at?"

"Nothing."

Shang Yanxiao spoke, and was surprised to find his own voice somewhat strained. He cleared his throat with a muffled cough. "I heard from Xie Qi that the first branch arrived in the capital yesterday, but didn't come back to stay at the estate's villa last night..."

A regular tie was far less troublesome. Bai Xu knotted it with practiced ease and picked up the thread of conversation. "You mean you suspect the first branch has something big up their sleeve?"

Shang Yanxiao did not deny it. "Banquets held jointly in Grandfather and Grandmother's names like today's are rare. It's an opportunity not to be missed, and there will certainly be no shortage of fawning and flattery."

Perhaps if the Old Master was pleased enough, he might loosen his grip on some of the Group's authority.

Whether it was the first branch or the second, or the relatives and guests of others, they would all likely be scrambling for a piece of it.

"The third branch will probably become a topic among the guests again today. If you hear things, just let them go in one ear. There's no need to contend over everything deliberately, don't let it touch you. Be careful in all things."

Bai Xu caught the concern Shang Yanxiao had tucked beneath his calm tone, and teased, "I'm the one who doesn't want to cause trouble, but what if someone else comes looking for it? I can't exactly just let people walk all over me."

Shang Yanxiao was silent.

Let people walk all over him? That was indeed not their way of doing things.

Bai Xu could see that Shang Yanxiao was cut from the same cloth as himself, and continued, "I know what I'm doing. When it's time to fight, you have to fight. Our third branch can't afford to lose~"

Hearing the words 'our third branch,' Shang Yanxiao's lips curved up slightly. "Alright, then handle it however you see fit. There should be quite a bit of entertainment tonight. I wonder how the first and second branches will go at each other?"

Bai Xu's eyes held a trace of anticipation. "However they want to go at it, it's not as though we haven't prepared. By the way, there were no mishaps with the gift?"

Shang Yanxiao thought of the 'special gift' that was soon to be presented to the Shang elders, and with a knowing air said, "I had Xie Qi get everything ready on his end. Once you give the word, he'll time it and send it over. You just coordinate with him when the moment comes."

"Good."

...

The banquet was held in the southwest corner of the estate.

An outdoor artificial lawn with lake views connected to the indoor banquet hall— a venue large enough to accommodate nearly a thousand people.

Of course, not just anyone had the privilege of attending a Shang family banquet.

Under her husband's urging, Fang Yuhua had deliberated over the guest list again and again, then presented it to the Shang elders for review, before finally extending invitations to just under a hundred guests.

Without exception, every one of them was an established family of the capital's social circle— each one a person of standing and distinction in their own right.

By the time Bai Xu arrived by shuttle, the banquet's prelude had already been underway for a short while. Unable to bear the lingering summer heat outside, he strode quickly into the banquet hall—

The interior's overall style leaned toward Chinese, the decor and furnishings refined and elegant— clearly the kind of aesthetic the Shang matriarch would favor.

Shang Yun and Fang Yuhua were dressed in exceptional splendor. The couple stood arm in arm with every appearance of conjugal warmth, smiling as they received the arriving guests on behalf of the Shang elders.

The guests of honor—the Shang elders themselves—were still resting in a lounge, while many of the guests had clustered in small groups of two or three, drinking and chatting among themselves.

Bai Xu swept his gaze around the room and decided he had no intention of attaching himself to anyone's side and inviting awkwardness.

There was still a little time before the banquet formally began. He found a rest area half-screened off by a roller blind, casually picked up a glass of fruit wine, and made his way over.

The ensemble the venue had brought in was a traditional Chinese orchestra, and the blended melody of winds and strings was extraordinarily soothing to the ear.

Just as Bai Xu closed his eyes and let himself be carried away by it, voices drifted in from beyond the curtain.

"Mr. Bai, what a pleasure. I didn't expect to run into you here today."

"Director Chen, it's been a long time. Let me introduce you, this is my wife."

"Director Chen, how do you do."

"Ah, Mrs. Bai, a pleasure."

The familiar voice allowed Bai Xu to identify the people outside— they were the original host's long-unseen convenient relatives: Bai Rendao and Qian Shuling.

Although the Bai family had some assets, they were not particularly notable within the capital's social circles. By rights, the couple should not have had the standing to attend a banquet of today's scale.

Bai Xu was still puzzling over this when the conversation beyond the roller blind continued.

The middle-aged man addressed as 'Director Chen' asked offhandedly, "By the way, Young Master Bai has been living with the Shang family for a while now, hasn't he? Has he greeted you two today? I think I just saw him walk into the banquet hall by himself."

Someone else nearby chimed in, "Exactly. Young Master Bai caused quite a stir not too long ago. He seems far more formidable than before, from what I can tell."

"Wealth cultivates a person. Now that he's in the Shang household, he won't have a worry in the world for the rest of his life. And to think, isn't that exactly why Mr. Bai has such good foresight?"

The way wealthy people talked was always roundabout, and veiled praise masking subtle jabs was nothing unusual. That last remark plainly implied that Bai Rendao had been far too calculating, using Bai Xu to forge a connection with the Shang family.

Hearing all this, the Bai couple felt an immediate flush of awkwardness.

"Oh my, everyone is having a laugh at our expense."

Qian Shuling smiled with hollow brightness. "Those of us who know Xiao Xu's character best are Rendao and I. This child has always been introverted and slow, he doesn't even greet people when he sees them. How could moving into the Shang household suddenly make him formidable?"

"If it weren't for the Third Young Master running into that wretched business, would the Old Madam Shang ever have taken a liking to him? He simply had a stroke of luck."

Bai Rendao followed up, "Exactly. Who in all the capital doesn't know that the Third Young Master is exceptionally distinguished? I thought from the very start that our Bai family was not worthy, and I simply didn't dare agree to this marriage arrangement."

The husband and wife played off each other in perfect tandem.

"Our Xiao Xu seems quiet and withdrawn ordinarily, but on this matter he had a mind of his own— he insisted on agreeing to the arrangement, and even said that even if the Third Young Master were to lie bedridden for the rest of his life, he would still be willing."

With that, Qian Shuling wiped herself and her husband clean of their role in pressuring the marriage from the very start, and in just a few words fashioned Bai Xu into the image of someone who had entered a wealthy household out of greed for money.

"......"

Behind the curtain, Bai Xu listened and found himself on the verge of laughter.

Just two or three months without seeing them, and this couple's ability to invert right and wrong had scaled yet another height.

Those outside, upon hearing all this, offered deliberate rejoinders. "Mr. Bai is too modest. Who wouldn't want to get aboard a ship like the Shang family? Whatever the Third Young Master's circumstances may be, the union between the Shang and Bai families is a good thing for everyone."

Bai Rendao continued with his courteous deflections. "Our Bai family has only that modest little enterprise. We're a small household, accustomed to doing business honestly and simply. Any benefit that isn't rightfully ours, I wouldn't dare lay a finger on."

"……"

What a joke.

Had the two of them not helped themselves to quite enough already?

Wearing a mask for so long, and they had genuinely started to believe themselves to be people of lofty disinterest?

Just as Bai Xu was about to step out and expose the Bai couple's hypocrisy, a familiar voice got there ahead of him—

"If Mr. Bai and Mrs. Bai were truly as unbothered and unworldly as all that, then you had no business coming to stir the pot at today's banquet!"

"……"

Bai Xu recognized Zhang Changning's voice, and a faint brightness came into his eyes.

On the other side of the roller blind, Zhang Changning had already brushed aside his elder brother's quiet attempts to restrain him and closed the distance in two strides where there should have been three.

He swept a displeased look over the Bai couple, and when he opened his mouth again it was another cutting remark. "Not to say I look down on people, but since you yourselves have said the Bai family is a small household, then you should know what caliber of event this banquet is and what sort of people have been invited."

"If it weren't for Bai Xu, what standing would you have to be here? What sort of act is this?"

"……"

Faced with this sudden and pointed exposure, the color on the Bai couple's faces began to falter almost at once.

It was Director Chen standing nearby who, seeing the atmosphere grow awkward, broke the silence. "Both of the Zhang family's young masters are here as well?"

Zhang Changxu, hearing this, had no choice but to step forward.

He concealed the helplessness gathering between his brows and spoke up in immediate defense of his younger brother. "My apologies, my little brother is still young, and when he speaks the truth he has no filter for it."

The truth?

So it seemed he too found the Bai couple to be putting on an act.

Quite a few of the guests caught the disdain tucked inside Zhang Changxu's words and watched this unexpected spectacle in quiet amusement.

Zhang Changning still felt it was not enough to vent his irritation. "Second Brother, what are you apologizing for? I didn't say anything wrong. I may not have known Bai Xu for long, but he is absolutely not the kind of person who chases after money."

"As for them, his so-called..."

Zhang Changning stumbled for a moment, then continued with a sharp edge. "Whatever sort of convenient relatives they are who appeared out of nowhere, to speak of Bai Xu this way in front of everyone, to put him down like this, it's too much."

The Zhang family was a renowned established household within the capital's circles, and among the foremost names on today's guest list.

Zhang Changning had only arrived a short while ago. He had not expected that while pulling his elder brother toward the dessert table, he would happen to overhear what this group of people was saying just nearby, and had simply been unable to hold himself back from stepping in to argue on Bai Xu's behalf.

"Mr. Bai, you're at your age already, surely there's no need to stand there and say things you know aren't true?"

"……"

Being publicly reprimanded by a young man like Zhang Changning, Bai Rendao could not hold his expression together and let his displeasure show. "Young Master Zhang, as the saying goes, you may know a person's face but not their heart."

"You said it yourself, you haven't known Bai Xu for long. So how could you possibly understand him better than we do?"

Zhang Changning's brow furrowed, only to have Qian Shuling cut in before he could respond. "Even if our Bai family cannot compare to the distinguished guests here, the company has been built up steadily and solidly over all these years."

"And besides, is there anyone who doesn't know that we were kind enough to take Bai Xu in? Just now we were only chatting casually, we had no intention of speaking ill of him whatsoever."

"He's the one this is all about and he isn't even here, and yet Young Master Ning is the one getting worked up on his behalf?"

That last line was plainly a reproach to Zhang Changning for sticking his nose where it did not belong.

Zhang Changxu's gaze shifted to Qian Shuling, and the look in his eyes changed abruptly—a hidden edge lurking beneath his composed expression. Before he could act on it, the roller blind nearby let out a sharp swishing sound.

"Quite the lively gathering, isn't it?"

Bai Xu lifted the curtain and stepped out, his gaze sweeping around with unhurried interest. "What's everyone talking about? Let the person in question hear it too?"

"……"

That unexpected question gave the Bai couple an immediate start—

How had Bai Xu ended up behind that curtain? When had he arrived? How long had he been there? Had he heard everything that was just said?

Zhang Changning stepped forward to meet him. "Bai Xu! I was just about to come find you!"

Bai Xu smiled at Zhang Changning, and said quietly but sincerely, "Changning, thank you."

Sincerity for sincerity.

This was not the first time Zhang Changning had spoken up for him, and somewhere in Bai Xu's heart he kept a record of this friend's kindness.

"My own affairs I'll handle myself, you just stay by your brother's side and watch the show. Don't let the Zhang family get mixed up with certain second-rate sorts."

The latter half of that was not said gently, and he made no effort to lower his voice.

Qian Shuling took it personally. "Bai Xu, what do you mean by that?!"

In that moment she forgot where she was, and wanted to lash out directly the way she used to in the Bai household. The look on her face and the words she spoke were soaked in an undisguised sourness she could not contain.

Those around her, witnessing her expression shift so abruptly, let their contempt show:

She couldn't keep up the act? What a petty display.

Perhaps she felt the gazes closing in around her, or perhaps it was Bai Rendao pulling at her from the side—Qian Shuling snapped back to herself all at once, but regrettably it was already too late.

Every trace of amusement drained from Bai Xu's eyes. "What I mean, do the two of you truly not know? Out of respect for the late Master Bai's kindness in taking me in, I have already given the Bai family more than enough face."

The original host had been endlessly good-natured, willing to swallow his grievances and yield— but he was not.

More and more guests were turning to look.

Bai Xu laid it bare on the spot. "Why did the Bai family take me in back then? Wasn't it because you believed some fortune-teller's words about using my birth chart to prop up your family's luck, while putting on a charitable face for the world? The height of hypocrisy."

The guests exchanged glances, momentarily uncertain whether to believe it or not.

Bai Xu seemed to anticipate their doubt. "Any clear-eyed person here who cares to look into it will see how I earned my scholarships all these years, and how I worked my way through school."

One of the guests caught on. "Right. Wasn't it said just recently that Bai Xu had been exploited by his university professor and his employer together? If the Bai family had truly treated him well, would he have needed to earn that little wage and let people walk over him?"

Bai Rendao paid no attention to any news about Bai Xu, and hearing all this now left him completely at sea.

Seeing that the situation had turned against him, he had no choice but to keep making excuses for himself. "That was the Old Master's idea, you—"

Bai Xu gave him no opening to wriggle out of it, cutting in without hesitation. "Exactly, because the two of you are even more mercenary than the late Master Bai was."

"Do you dare say you never pressured me into agreeing to this marriage arrangement? Dare say you gained no business advantage from it whatsoever? And even the fine son you raised, his mind is in the gutter on an ordinary day."

"……"

A thunderclap.

That relentless volley of accusations blasted open a gaping hole— and left Bai Rendao and Qian Shuling with no lie they could spin fast enough to patch it.

Bai Xu, aware that he had drawn more than enough attention, shifted his demeanor in an instant.

He drew a deep breath, and when the next words came out his voice carried a pained tremor. "If I hadn't agreed to this arrangement, who knows what your family would have done to me. Do you really think everyone here is a fool?"

"……"

Indeed.

Who did they take for a fool?

This was already a marriage arrangement out in the open—how could the Bai family possibly have gained nothing from it? It was hardly as though the Shang family had been the ones extracting benefit from them.

The guests standing around weighed it all in their own minds, and seeing the reddened corners of Bai Xu's eyes, opinion began to tilt one after another.

Director Chen, who had been chatting with the Bai couple just a moment before, quietly stepped back two paces—as if drawing a line between himself and them.

Just as the scales of 'justice' were about to tip, the second branch couple finally made their unhurried appearance. Fang Yuhua approached wearing her fixed smile. "Why are so many people gathered here? What's happened?"

Upon catching sight of Bai Xu at the center of the controversy, a flash of impatience crossed the depths of her eyes. "Bai Xu, why is it you again?"

Zhang Changning could not help but cut in. "Second Aunt Shang, it was clearly Mr. Bai and Mrs. Bai doing all the gossiping, you're asking the wrong person."

"Second Madam, you've finally come!"

Qian Shuling, as though spotting her reinforcements, composed her expression and began playing the aggrieved party. "We are guests at this banquet, after all. We were only having a casual chat, and somehow your third branch's young master here decided to take it all to heart."

"……"

Remarkable.

Just moments ago she had been pressing him with talk of the Bai family's adoption at every turn—and now that things had taken a turn, she pivoted in an instant and filed Bai Xu under the Shang third branch?

Zhang Changning's eyes went wide. He tugged at his elder brother's sleeve in silent outrage at the sheer audacity—but the very next second, Fang Yuhua smoothly picked up the blame and laid it at Bai Xu's feet. "Bai Xu, this is your fault."

"You should know what kind of occasion today is. Our family has never gone in for throwing our weight around."

Today, Fang Yuhua not only wanted the second branch to shine and claim their standing, she also wanted to take the opportunity to knock the edge off the third branch.

Seizing on the opening that had landed right at her door, she smiled pleasantly as she moved in. "After all, Mr. Bai and Mrs. Bai are guests invited by our Shang family. If you continue to be disruptive, you are deliberately trying to make the Old Master and the Old Madam unhappy."

"……"

A great blame, pressed down without hesitation.

Bai Xu looked at Fang Yuhua, whose exclusionary motives were plain to see, and a rare edge crept into the depths of his eyes— yet before he could act on it, a voice of unmistakable authority rang out.

"Oh? Who is trying to make me unhappy?"

With those resounding words, the guests standing at the outermost edge parted as one, and amid a rising chorus of greetings, every voice carried nothing but respect—

"Old Master Shang."

"Old Madam, how do you do."

"Chairman Shang, good day."

The Shang elders arrived hand in hand before the watching crowd, dressed in a matching set of custom-made Chinese formal attire.

Zhang Changning cast a glance at Bai Xu's unsettled expression, then with particular sharpness moved to seize the floor first. "Grandfather Shang, Grandmother Shang, it's been so long! My parents asked me to send their regards~"

Zhang Changning was handsome, and when he turned on the charm he was all the more endearing.

The Old Madam Shang had more or less watched him grow up, and broke into a smile at once. "My, the Zhang family's youngest is here?"

Zhang Changxu met the old master's gaze, calm and courteous. "Sir, my eldest sister-in-law gave birth just yesterday at the hospital in the neighboring province. My parents have gone to be with her, so they weren't able to come and offer their congratulations today. I hope you and the Old Madam will forgive them."

The Old Master gave a small nod. "Pass my regards to your parents when you return."

"Grandmother Shang, you've come at just the right moment! Please, both of you, be our judge—" Zhang Changning slipped in a touch of playful appeal and brought the thread of conversation back on point. "We absolutely cannot let Bai Xu be wronged by outsiders for no reason at all."

"……"

The Bai couple drew a sharp breath.

What on earth was Zhang Changning doing? Did he have to fight this out for Bai Xu no matter what?

Watching Zhang Changning deliver that perfectly placed assist, Bai Xu couldn't help giving him a silent thumbs-up in his heart.

He quickly gathered himself, turned to the old master, and offered a sincere apology. "Old Master, Old Madam, the fault is mine."

"……"

At those words, quite a few people were thrown into fresh confusion:

How had things jumped so suddenly to an apology? Was he conceding already?

The Old Master kept a stern face. "Tell me first what happened."

Bai Xu answered, "I just had a small disagreement with Mr. Bai and Mrs. Bai. The Second Madam heard about it and came over to smooth things over, telling me not to cause you any unhappiness at a banquet like this."

Not a single word of embellishment, and yet in everyone's ears it landed differently—

Wait?

Wasn't there somehow an indescribable sense of grievance in that?

The Old Master said nothing, only let his searching gaze come to rest on the Bai couple.

Bai Rendao and Qian Shuling met that sharp, hawk-like gaze and felt their nerve give way on the spot. "G- good day, Old Master."

The Old Master's eyes were keen and penetrating. He paid their greeting no mind whatsoever, and instead called out, "Second daughter-in-law."

The named Fang Yuhua only now registered that something was wrong, and her heart lurched at once.

"Father..."

She had barely opened her mouth to explain herself when the old master's demand rang out across the entire room. "I am asking you, were they on the proposed guest list you submitted to me? How exactly did you handle this?"

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